Posts Tagged With: Metabolism

To enjoy successful, long term weight loss you need to change your perspective on how to lose weight and consider how to modify your lifestyle rather than how to go on (another) diet. This can be easier said than done for many ‘dieters’ who have carried excess weight for years and tried varied approaches, including a calories loss food program. To regain their body shape and good health they need to modify their lives not just the food they eat and see their body as a friend that needs to well cared for.

There are long-term physical and emotional health benefits for developing a healthy body early in life and investing time in keeping it that way. Careful consideration of how you approach food and what you eat through a calories loss menu will be apparent when you begin to enjoy greater energy, more relaxed sleep and even an improved metabolism where the calories in your diet are better processed. It is essential to consider the type of food your body needs to stay healthy and in shape as part of your lifestyle changes.

The role of exercise in the development of a healthy, strong body should not be underestimated. Exercise to develop muscle assists with the burning of calories and additionally boosts your metabolic rate. You may enjoy swimming as a regular form of exercise rather than pumping weights but because either will benefit your body through muscle development choose the most appealing exercise that will challenge you over the long term.

You can start your new lifestyle now without requiring special meals by ordering a salad for your next lunch, or having a healthy glass of water instead of that soda. When you are at the grocery store, think about the best choice for eating healthily and creating a calories loss in meals across the next week. Instead of reaching for a frozen pizza, select a bag of frozen vegetables for dinner and cook up those vegetables with some white rice and a chicken breast instead of making macaroni and cheese.

Portion size is also an important and sometimes underrated part of a healthy lifestyle. Most people eat double the portion size they should have at each meal because it is more than your stomach should hold and as a result and not surprisingly they find it difficult to lose weight. Your stomach is about the size of your fist and this is an indication of the amount of food your stomach can best manage.

It is worth imagining the size of your stomach as you look at your closed fist. Recall the size of your most recent meal and imagine how your stomach managed to hold this. Its capacity to stretch means that it can accommodate quite large amounts of food without you realizing this.

When you sit down to eat your next meal, make a fist before you lift that fork and try not to eat more food than you could fit into that fist. Eating smaller meals that are no bigger than a fist 4-5 times a day is a much better way to lose weight than eating 3 larger meals per day. This means there is less reason to enlarge your stomach regularly and because of this less need to eat larger portions of food to fill it.

This small but essential aspect of a successful weight loss food program is important to understand and act upon. Although foods that bring about calories loss is a core aspect of long term weight loss, just knowing the size of your stomach and ensuring that it is not unnecessarily stretched and then refilled to the same extent will assist you determine not only what you eat but how much and how often. Smaller and more frequent meals are well worth factoring into your new and healthier lifestyle.

When you start a new diet it is always exciting and easy to ‘commit’ to a daily calories loss menu and regular exercise. You tell yourself that this time you are going to stick with it, this time will be different, this time you are really committed. But do you really stick with the diet or do you go back to your old eating habits and end up with no weight loss and sometimes even a weight gain?

The reality is that dieting is not like an indefinite honeymoon, it is more like a marriage where we should expect difficult times and some hurdles along the way. To reshape your body on a permanent basis and to get healthier and fitter you need to find or devise a weight loss program that is balanced as well as something that you can enjoy across the long term. Spend time selecting foods on your calories loss menu that you really like to eat then find exercise that can become a welcome part of your life and when you have done that make a public commitment to continuing this.

Committing to anything involves letting others in on your secret and using some kind of outward sign that you are serious. If this seems a little contrived to you, do not underestimate the power of an action like this and recall the significance of symbols like trophies, rings and pledges during special ceremonies on other important occasions. Politicians like Senator McCain or Senator Obama will be committing to our whole country in November. If you really are serious about sticking to a balanced calories loss diet and you really want to enjoy the benefits of and successful exercise program then be prepared to commit this to others in your life.

Making a commitment to lose weight and enjoy a healthy life is important and you can do this in a number of fun ways including a written contract where you agree to stick with your program for a minimum of six months and then review your progress and commitment then . Make sure that you specify the outcome of following your contact and breaking it. Add your signature and request a witness countersigns it so that it can be a sign and a reminder of your commitment that you keep in a public place.

Hire a personal trainer as extra incentive because once you spend the money for a personal trainer, that money is gone whether you use those personal training sessions or not. The same rule usually applies to a gym membership as well, so spending money on exercise this is a commitment to getting fit. And knowing that money is gone whether or not you use that gym membership or get those personal training sessions they are likely to motivate you to exercise more.

Start up a ‘Weight Watching’ club by finding friends and workmates who like the idea of sharing their commitment to a healthier body and life. Make meetings fun, focusing on each others’ weight loss success and include time to hear about what works best for individuals. Support groups like this are public opportunities for members to make initial and then ongoing commitment to themselves and each other and work very effectively for large weight loss organizations as well as smaller groups.

Let others know about your new eating plan, in particular those at home, in your workplace and any of your other usual contacts. Let them know about your weight loss and exercise goals and the program you plan to follow and notice how they ask you about your calories loss eating and the impact that this has on your weight loss. Because you have shared your plans with others, there is a strong possibility that you will remain committed even when things get tough and you are tempted to give up.

Have a clear mental ‘picture’ of how you plan to look when you have reached your goal weight. Find pictures in magazines of the new ‘look’ you are working towards and display them at home and in your workplace. This very public way of committing to a healthy weight loss for good through calories loss and exercise is very public commitment at the beginning of your diet and an effective motivator to keep you strong and resilient even when times get tough.

Fractures caused by thinning and brittle bones affects one in three women and one in twelve men. It is a leading cause of death.

Bone mass reaches a peak at about the age of 35. After that it declines, especially for women who have 10 % - 15% less bone mass than men at skeletal maturity. There is then an accelerated loss of bone for up to a decade around the menopause when there is a decline in hormone levels. The answer is not Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT). This increases the risk of heart attack, strokes, blood clots and cancer.

The Problem With Calcium

Calcium is important. But osteoporosis is not disease caused by calcium deficiency. Just taking calcium supplements is not the answer. There is no guarantee is will be absorbed into the bone. It could remain in the blood and be delivered to non bone tissues where it may create its own problems. Vitamin D improves the absorption of calcium but it is also works in synergy with other minerals.

Magnesium Is Also Important

Two-thirds of the body’s magnesium is found in the bones. It plays a crucial role in calcium and bone metabolism. Deficiency causes decreased bone strength and volume and poor development. A positive association with Bone Mineral Density (BMD) has been demonstrated in many population studies.

Strontium Can Stimulate Bone Formation

A century ago studies demonstrated strontium to be able to effectively stimulate rapid bone formation and that the combination of strontium with calcium was superior to using calcium alone to mineralise bones.

Boron Helps Bones To Heal

Boron is an important mineral for calcium retention. Dr Rex Newnham, a world authority on boron has stated that broken bones will heal in half the usual time with adequate supplies of this mineral.

Manganese Is Needed For Bone Growth

To mineralise bone, manganese is required. Women with osteoporosis were found to have blood manganese levels at only 25% of the level of those who didn’t have this condition. Deficiencies of manganese can give rise to abnormal growth of bone and cartilage as well as degeneration of the vertebral discs.

You Need Silicon, Zinc & Copper

Silicon is very rigid and is used by the body at calcification sites of bones. Zinc is necessary if bones are to form normally. Copper works in conjunction with zinc. Depletion leads to bone defects and calcium loss. Iron may also play an important role in bone formation.

Let’s Not Forget Those Vitamins

Vitamin D is required for calcium to be absorbed in the intestines. It also helps regulate bone turnover. Deficiencies are quite common in the elderly since its status declines with age.

Vitamin K is vital for bone formation, remodelling and repair. A few population studies show that deficiencies of vitamin K in either the diet or circulating in the body is associated with reduced BMD or an increase in the rate of fracture.

Vitamin C is also required for bone health. It is vital for the formation of collagen within the bone matrix. It may protect the skeleton from oxidative stress especially for those that smoke. Cigarette smoking increases hip fracture risk.

Vitamin A is important in the bone remodelling process. Deficiencies are known to be detrimental to bone health.

Studies suggest menopause is associated with an increased requirement for folic acid because of decreased efficiency at converting homocysteine - a toxic byproduct of protein metabolism - to less toxic compounds. For this reason other nutrients that offer protection from homocysteine such as vitamin B6 and B12 may also be important.

And Finally

In conclusion, bone health depends on a sufficient supply of a wide range of nutrients that goes well beyond calcium and vitamin D. Such an approach is likely to be far more successful than current orthodox approaches which leave a lot to be desired.